Singapore, Barcelona, London, New York and London have ranked as the world’s smartest cities according to the latest Proximity.Directory report.

The Q4 2016 report has aggregated information from more than 370 Proximity Solution Providers in over 50 different countries and reveals the latest trends, facts, and figures from the global proximity technologies can benefit smart cities.

Between 2014 and 2016 the global smart city technology market increased with $3.3 billion, going from $8.8 billion to $12.1 billion. According to the report, 66 per cent of the world population will live in urban areas by 2050.

Singapore

Singapore deployed a massive amount of sensors and cameras around the city to analyze traffic congestion and crowd density, enabling government and officials to reroute buses at rush hours, avert traffic jams. They are able to predict how new buildings may affect wind patterns or communications signals.

Barcelona

Barcelona has installed wireless LED street lights to reduce energy usage, in addition to deploying a network of ground sensors to regulate irrigation relative to forecasted rainfall estimates and temperature.

NYC

New York City has implemented a high-speed broadband service for the entire city which will be completed by 2025, to facilitate monitoring data on air quality, traffic, and energy consumption.

London

London is using technology to help tackle congestion and make parking simpler. Government officials have opened up date to start-ups and projects to take advantage of it in building their projects.

San Francisco

San Francisco has implemented a smart parking system to monitor occupancy and can use this date for a dynamic parking system that adjusts the cost of parking based on whether spots are occupied or vacant.